Overland store returns after hiatus

A retail store that left Lincoln Avenue 19 months ago has returned in a new location.

Overland, a clothing store specializing in leather and sheepskin products, opened Thursday at 612 Lincoln Ave. in a new building developed by Dean Sandvik with partners Jack and Shirlee Finney.

Overland, formerly known as Overland Sheepskin Company, used to do business at 729 Lincoln Ave. The store left that space April 1, 2002, and did not immediately reopen. Company General Manager Bob Sanny said from his Fairfield, Iowa, office Friday that owner Roger Leahy began rethinking his decision to close in Steamboat almost as soon as they locked the doors to the old store.

The Leahy family opened its first store in Taos, N.M., 30 years ago. The new Steamboat store is number 13 in the privately held chain.

Overland also opened a new store in Park City, Utah, in October.

Sanny said the company has enjoyed success in Rocky Mountain ski towns.

The new store's manager is Phyllus Gladys, who also managed the original Steamboat store, but moved away for a year after it closed.

"The new space is much larger, and it's laid out beautifully," Gladys said. "The entire Leahy family was involved in designing the store. It has lots of windows, making it very bright, and there's enough space to show more merchandise."

Gladys said Overland's signature shearling sheepskin coats begin at about $500 and go up to $2,500. The store also features leather and fur coats, as well as leather accessories.

Sanny praised general contractor Holmquist-Lorenz Construction of Steamboat Springs and said Sandvik had been easy to work with as the landlord.

The building originally was intended to accommodate four separate retail operations, but Overland decided to take the entire 4,000 square feet, even though it was a little bigger than most of their stores.